


The Brightest

by camichats



Series: Imagine James and Sirius Prompts [204]
Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Alternate Universe - No Voldemort, Alternate Universe - Soulmates, Getting Together, M/M, Marauders Era (Harry Potter), Oblivious James Potter, Realization, Soulmate-Identifying Marks
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-02-06
Updated: 2021-02-06
Packaged: 2021-03-18 10:21:35
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,852
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29242005
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/camichats/pseuds/camichats
Summary: The Brightestwasn't the most descriptive soulmark in the world, but James was sure that Lily was his soulmate. Sure for about three years until new information makes him rethink it.
Relationships: Sirius Black/James Potter
Series: Imagine James and Sirius Prompts [204]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/752925
Comments: 8
Kudos: 149





	The Brightest

**Author's Note:**

> For the prompt: “I always have this idea in my mind with soulmate tattoos and james having one like 'the brightest' or something and thinking its for lily as the brightest witch of her age, til sirius mentions one day that his star is the brightest star in the night sky?”

James's soulmark was just under his right hipbone, written upside down so that he could read it. With that location, it meant nobody had seen it. Soulmarks could be talked about, but you weren't supposed to go around showing it to people. Everyone had to cover it up if it wasn't hidden under clothes. James had it easy; his were covered by his pants, and he didn't even have to bend around weird to see it. 

**_The Brightest_ **

There was never any telling what your soulmark would be. Most people had words, but some people had pictures. Merlin himself had had a soulmark that just said his soulmate's name, but that was incredibly rare. It was always something to identify your soulmate, but it could be cryptic. 'The Brightest' wasn't the most descriptive thing ever, so James knew that he'd have to keep a sharp eye out if he wanted to find his soulmate. 

And he was sure, for about three years, that he'd struck gold. One Lily Evans, of Gryffindor House with stunning red hair and a prefect badge now pinned to her robes, was often described as the 'brightest witch of her age'. If she wasn't _the_ best in their year, she was definitely in the top five. Along with Sirius, of course, but no one called him the brightest in their year or summat-- even though he was. 

Lily Evans, The Brightest, and his soulmate. 

The problem was that she sort of hated him-- childhood exuberance, what could you do-- and her own soulmark must be vague enough that she didn't know it was him yet. 

"Which star is Sirius, anyways?" Marlene asked one day in the common room. Marlene was funny and horribly attractive. 

James didn't like her. He also didn't like that she was effortlessly charming. Anytime _he_ tried to be charming, he just came off as awkward and trying too hard-- according to Remus; Sirius thought he was funny. Unfortunately, Sirius also thought Marlene was charming, so. James didn't really get a win there. 

"It's part of Canis Major, and the brightest star in the sky. Except for the sun, but most people don't count it as a star," Sirius said. 

"The brightest star?" James asked, looking over from his book. He hadn't been reading it, but he'd been trying to pretend like he was. Making it clear that he'd been listening wasn't what he’d been going for when Marlene had sat down across from Sirius, but he needed to know if he'd heard that wrong. 

"Yeah," Sirius said. "Kinda makes you wonder why my parents didn't change my name when it became clear they hated me." 

Marlene had a nice reply to that, and she paired it with flipping her hair over her shoulder. 

James didn't hear what she said though, not with his mind fuzzing out so the only details he knew were his soulmark and what Sirius had just said. The brightest star in the sky. The brightest. 

Fuck. 

* * *

"Sirius?" James asked, both of them sat on their own beds, books open as they read the next chapter for History of Magic. 

"Yeah?" 

"We're close, right?" 

"Sure bloody hope so," Sirius said. "We live together year round. It would get kind of awkward if you hated me." 

"I don't hate you, don't be stupid," James said, rolling his eyes. 

"Invigorated to hear it," Sirius said, shooting him an amused grin. "What's up?" 

"What's your soulmark?" James asked, getting the question out quickly like it would help protect him from the backlash. 

The reaction was immediate. Sirius froze, his whole body getting tense. Parents knew your soulmark. Other family members sometimes did, depending on how close you were. Medi-wizards did, for obvious reasons, but it's not like they cared who their patients' soulmates were. Some people weren't as protective about covering their soulmarks, so you might see it in passing the locker room or summat. As far as James knew though, Sirius had always been careful to keep his covered with a thick band around his ankle. Even for people that didn't bother to keep theirs completely hidden though, it was understood that you didn't ask. 

Once people knew they were soulmates, they showed their marks to each other. You didn't ask your best friend-- no matter how close you were-- what it looked like or if you could see it. 

And the thought had occurred to James more than once over the years. He'd actually spent a ridiculous amount of time thinking about Sirius over the years, but he'd sort of thought that everyone did that. Sirius was gorgeous, okay? James couldn't have been the only one that had the occasional fantasy about him, but after hearing that Sirius was the brightest star not only in its constellation, but in the entire sky, he'd had to think about it a little more. What he'd written off as pure aesthetic appreciation and teenage hormones was... well, probably not. 

Instead of Sirius telling him to bugger off or saying that he wasn't going to tell him that, he asked, "Why?" 

Aaaand that's why James was not the sole planner for the pranks. He could connect two points, but he forgot about the different offshoots the first point could have. Like with this. He'd connected that if he knew what Sirius's soulmark was, then he'd know for sure that they were soulmates. He hadn't considered that Sirius would ask him why he wanted to know before sharing anything. "Erm." 

"I'm not going to tell you if you're just being nosy, but you've never asked before, so it feels like you have a reason." 

"Of course I have a reason." 

A pause. "And that reason would be?" Sirius prodded. 

"I- so I was thinking about my mark the other day, and it's kind of ambiguous. I was so sure it was Lily because of the way everyone talked about her, but now I was thinking... maybe not." 

Sirius blinked at him. "You think I'm your soulmate now?" He sounded more than a little accusatory, and James winced. 

"I know how that sounds, but come on, Pads, think about it from my perspective from a minute. I'm pretty much convinced that this person is my soulmate because of a phrase that's open to interpretation, shutting out all other attraction and stopping to consider that I've never felt that way about her. And then, y'know," he waved a hand vaguely to show that something had happened, "I got to thinking about you, and it would make a lot more sense." 

"You're impossible." 

"So that's a no on telling me what your soulmark is. You could've sad that from the beginning, and we could've avoided all of this." 

Sirius groaned, letting his head thump forward on the textbook. 

"Okay, I really don't know what to do with that reaction." 

"How about this: we date for a little bit, and if you still think I'm your soulmate _then_ , I'll tell you what my mark is." 

"Deal." 

* * *

They got three weeks in before it occurred to James that there was no reason for Sirius to have suggested them dating unless his soulmark was more straightforward. Straightforward enough that he knew it was James. And if he was that sure of it, then he'd just been waiting around for James to figure it out. A couple years ago, James might've teased him for it, but he could understand why Sirius had felt the need to be cautious; James had never really considered himself available. He'd gone straight from not caring about dating anyone, to being convinced that Lily was his soulmate. If James had been in Sirius's shoes, he wouldn't have done anything either. 

The part about it that he didn't really understand was where Sirius didn't tell him about his soulmark when he asked about it. If it was so obvious, then it would make perfect sense to tell James so that they could get together. 

And then he thought about it some more and realised that it had worked out, anyways. Sirius hadn't needed to tell him that they were soulmates. He'd said, "We date for a little bit," and left it to James to put the pieces together. Sirius really was brilliant, wasn't he? James didn't need to be told flat out that Sirius was his soulmate anymore, because he knew that it was true. Yes, he'd put the clues together until they made sense, but more than that, he'd dated Sirius, and it had felt _right_. Maybe a little awkward from time to time when one of them thought it was a date and the other thought the whole Marauders group was invited, but they were right where they needed to be. 

They were still mates even though they were dating too, and that meant everything to James. Maybe that's what it meant to be soulmates, for them. He's always wondered how he would know how to be with his soulmate, but now that he was there, it was the easiest thing in the world-- behind riding a broom, because, honestly. 

* * *

About a month and a half into dating, Sirius said, "You haven't asked me about my soulmark." 

"I know." 

"Why haven't you?" 

James smiled at him. "Because I don't need to see it to know what we are to each other." 

* * *

Over the summer, James showed his soulmark to Sirius. They hadn't shagged yet, and probably wouldn't for a while longer, so it was a bit awkward to pull his pants down enough to show him. Sirius was sitting next to him and not across from him, so all he had to do was look down to read it. 

"You see why I was confused?" James joked. 

Sirius snickered. "I still think it was obvious." 

"Everyone calls her the brightest witch in our year, and I didn't know that your star was the brightest in the sky, alright? And in my defense, as soon as I learned that, I figured it out." 

"You didn't already know that?" 

"Not all of us grow up learning about constellations." 

"Aww, poor baby," Sirius cooed, ruffling James's hair. 

James bat his hand away and pulled his clothes back to their usual positions. 

"Ugh, I guess that this is the part where I show you mine," Sirius groused, but he didn't look actually upset. He pulled his foot up close and unbuttoned the cuff he had covering his ankle. 

James tilted his head to get a better look at it. 

**_27 March 1960_ **

"You've got to be sodding kidding me. Really?" James asked, looking up at Sirius, who shrugged. "I get something completely cryptic, and _you_ get my birthday. That's bollocks." 

"Hey, be happy for us. If it weren't for me knowing what was going on, you'd still be chasing after Lily's skirt." 

"I would not," James denied. "I would've caught on before that." 

Sirius snorted, putting the cuff back on. "Whatever gets you through the night, mate." 

"Be nice to me," James whined, leaning into him heavily. 

Sirius pressed a kiss to the top of his head. “I’m always nice to you.” 

**Author's Note:**

> This is from a prompt driven blog @[imaginejamesandsirius](https://imaginejamesandsirius.tumblr.com) on tumblr. Feel free to drop by!


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